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Sunverge Raises US$11 Million to Expand DER Control and Aggregation Platform

Sunverge to build utility-grade distributed energy resilience in new geographies with capital infusion from three new investors.

Aug 22, 2019

Sunverge recently announced a US$11 million capital raise to continue to expand and evolve its distributed energy resource (DER) control and aggregation platform which will help utilities operationalize and integrate DERs into core utility operations. The round was led by Ecosystem Integrity Fund with participation from Equinor Energy Ventures and Evergy Ventures.

The global energy landscape is undergoing a rapid transition and transformation. The latest FERC report shows generation from renewables outpacing nuclear and traditional generation methods, with additional momentum expected to continue throughout 2022. With the changing market landscape, today’s utilities require new mission critical technologies to enable them to integrate and operate DERs as reliable generation and grid assets. This allows them to modernize their distribution grids and replace traditional fossil fuel peak and base generation with distributed clean energy resources.

The Sunverge Energy Platform provides utilities with real-time grid-edge visibility and management capabilities for this increasingly distributed and interconnected web of DERs that include solar, energy storage, electric vehicles (EVs), and EV chargers in addition to other smart devices such as smart thermostats, water heaters, and more.

"With many investor-owned and municipal utilities committing to drastic carbon emissions reduction and targeting 100% carbon-free energy, combined with clean energy consumer choice trends and proliferation of EVs, we are witnessing an accelerated transformation of the industry and transition to clean energy technologies," said Martin Milani, CEO of Sunverge. "This new capital will allow Sunverge to continue ongoing innovation and expand partnerships with utilities to help with this transition and provide the technology required to turn clean DERs into reliable resources that can be integrated into core utility planning and operations. Utilities are no longer contemplating clean distributed energy — they're actively participating and investing in integration of renewables with grid modernization efforts."

"We have been actively looking to invest in this space for a long time and take a highly selective approach to investments. Sunverge stood out to us because of team’s deep knowledge of the utility and smart grid space, along with the platform’s flexibility to meet the needs of the distribution grids of today and tomorrow. We are proud to back Sunverge and its mission," said Geoff Eisenberg, partner at Ecosystem Integrity Fund. "We believe the Sunverge platform can play a critical role in transitioning our existing power system from fossil fuel to reliable and clean distributed generation."

"Energy storage and DERs will grow exponentially in North America over the next decade. As a forward-thinking utility, we want to stay on top of these trends to both guide our investments in these technologies as well as deliver new engaging and innovative energy services to our customers," said Chuck Caisely, chief customer officer at Evergy. "Sunverge is uniquely positioned to help utilities embrace and operationalize these exciting new technologies."

"Right now, customers typically own DERs, but utilities are the ideal owners of these assets because of their lower cost of capital," said Gareth Burns, managing director at Equinor Energy Ventures. "Sunverge’s platform proves the value of the baseload power generated by DERs and will ultimately help utilities convince both public utility commissions and consumers that assets like solar and energy storage are the right investment for the future of our energy markets."

For more information on Sunverge, utility professionals can contact [email protected].